Inauguration of Pie-IX BRT

Press release

Greater Montréal’s brand-new bus rapid transit service is inaugurated

Today, the brand-new Pie-IX Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) was inaugurated by Geneviève Guilbault, Deputy Premier and Quebec’s Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility; Emmanuel Dubourg, Member of Parliament for Bourassa, on behalf of the Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities; Angelo Iacono, Member of Parliament for Alfred-Pellan; Valérie Plante, Mayor of Montréal; Benoît Gendron, Chief Executive Officer of the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM); and Éric Alan Caldwell, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Société de transport de Montréal (STM). Joining them for this event were representatives from the City of Laval, Société de transport de Laval (STL), exo, and Société québécoise des infrastructures (SQI), as well as from the boroughs of Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Montréal-Nord, Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie, and Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension.

Quotes

“The commissioning of this major project, in which your government has invested more than $345 million, will facilitate and encourage the use of public transit in Montréal’s east end. The Pie-IX BRT, which connects with the future Blue line extension, the Green line, and the exo5 Mascouche train line, will become an important component of a new sustainable mobility network that will contribute to the east end’s growth. With these investments, we are helping to improve the service offering for transit users and making Quebec even greener! Get on board as of November 7!”

Geneviève Guilbault, Deputy Minister and Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility

“The Government of Canada recognizes that investing in public transit infrastructure is key to improving urban mobility and travel efficiency. Today, I am pleased to see the inauguration of the new Pie-IX BRT, which will provide faster and more reliable public transit options for local residents’ everyday trips. By investing in infrastructure, the Government of Canada is growing our economy, making our communities more resilient, and improving the lives of Canadians.”

Emmanuel Dubourg, Member of Parliament for Bourassa, on behalf of the Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities

“The project that we are inaugurating today will provide residents of eastern Laval and four Montréal boroughs with a fast and safe bus service. This new public transit service will also help encourage residents and visitors alike to switch from using their cars to using faster, more environmentally friendly means of transportation, which will reduce our carbon footprint and take us one step closer to a greener future.”

Angelo Iacono, Member of Parliament for Alfred-Pellan

“Public transit is the future of mobility in Montréal. We know that our streets are overcrowded and that the increase in the number of cars is unsustainable. In addition, the climate emergency compels us to speed up our ecological transition and drastically reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. Public transit plays a key role in tackling these challenges, so we must continue to ramp up our delivery of comfortable, efficient, and rapid public transit, such as the Pie-IX BRT. This major project will help improve mobility in the east end of Montréal—and we encourage Montrealers to try it and embrace it!”

Valérie Plante, Mayor of Montréal

“The Pie-IX BRT is a fine example of cooperation and coordination for urban development that incorporates sustainable mobility and land-use planning. Public transit must be agile and offer a renewed mobility experience through efficient, comfortable, reliable, and more frequent service that can meet citizens’ needs. We are together today to inaugurate a key component of this vision. This is an important step for the East and Northeast to provide Greater Montréal with a greater number of efficient services.”

Benoît Gendron, Chief Executive Officer of the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM)

“As ARTM’s delegated manager, the STM is proud to offer a new mobility option that is reliable, safe, and, most importantly, connected to the various major modes of transportation available in Montréal, making it possible to quickly cross the island to Laval. The Pie-IX BRT is a prime example of how we can prioritize sustainable mobility in the development of our city to tackle single-occupant car use and climate change. This new, people-focused public transit infrastructure will also help improve the quality of life of the population that it serves and inject economic vitality into the east end of Montréal.”

Éric Alan Caldwell, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Société de transport de Montréal (STM)

Key facts

  • In operation as of November 7, 2022, the Pie-IX BRT is a bus rapid transit service that consists of infrastructure spread over 11 kilometres, from Saint-Martin Boulevard in Laval to Pierre-De Coubertin Avenue in Montréal, with the exception of the Jean-Talon area, where construction of the pedestrian tunnel to the future Blue line station is still ongoing, and the Pie-IX Bridge, whose rehabilitation will be completed in 2023.
  • It consists of exclusively reserved lanes that are painted a different colour and located mostly in the middle of the road rather than in the right-hand lane.
  • Buses of the STM, STL, and exo (beginning in 2023) will run in the Pie-IX BRT corridor. The BRT will offer transfers to the métro Green line (Pie-IX station), STL services in Laval, and the exo5 commuter train line to Mascouche (St-Michel-Montréal-Nord station).
  • The 439 Express Pie-IX will be the main bus line using the BRT corridor, and its daytime service frequency will be increased on the Island of Montréal with three different routes.
  • As per the Politique d’intégration des arts à l’architecture et à l’environnement des bâtiments et des sites gouvernementaux et publics, the piece Kyrielle, by artist Jean-Sébastien Denis, will eventually be displayed on 34 of the 38 BRT shelters. It will be the first artwork built into Montréal and Laval’s bus network.
  • This $472.5 million project is mainly funded by the Government of Quebec, including $345 million for public transit and $180.2 million for municipal infrastructure and the redevelopment of Pie-IX Boulevard.
  • The Government of Canada has allocated more than $85 million in federal funding for the Pie-IX BRT project and the major rehabilitation of the Pie-IX Bridge, including
  • $78.8 million from the National and Regional Projects sub-component of the 2014 New Building Canada Fund and $6.1 million from the Public Transit stream of the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program.

Outline

Video

Consult the accessibility page for more info on the external medias.

See https://youtu.be/ghB6NrAalCQ on YouTube

Photos

From right to left : M. Marc Blanchet, Directeur exécutif, Gestion des infrastructures et portefeuille de projets at ARTM, M. Éric Alan Caldwell, President of the Board at STM, Ms Valérie Plante, Mayor of Montreal, Ms Geneviève Guilbault, vice-première ministre et ministre des Transports et de la Mobilité durable, M. Emmanuel Dubourg, fereral MP of Bourassa et M. Angelo Iacono, federal MP of Alfred-Pellan.

Click on the image to download high resolution version. Photo credits: Julien Perron-Gagné.

About the Pie-IX BRT

The Pie-IX BRT project is a joint effort between the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM), City of Montréal, and Quebec’s Ministère des Transports et de la Mobilité durable. All work was done in close collaboration with the ARTM’s delegated manager, the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), and their partners: the City of Laval, the Société de transport de Laval (STL), exo, the Société québécoise des infrastructures (SQI) and the boroughs served by the project. The integrated Pie-IX BRT is one of the projects that was developed following the joint declaration from the Quebec and Montréal governments to revitalize the east end of the city. Many others are underway to breathe new life into the area. Increased mobility, economic development, and improved living environments for citizens are the main focuses of this ambitious undertaking. For more information: brtpieix.ca.